


Brotherhood

by HufflepuffLightwoodBane



Category: Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)
Genre: Brotherly Love, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-12
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-01-16 14:08:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12344217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HufflepuffLightwoodBane/pseuds/HufflepuffLightwoodBane
Summary: what happened at the end of the movie Prince of Thieves? what happened before Robin and Marian got married? How did Robin and Will react to being brothers?





	1. I have a brother

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first story on here and the first one i ever wrote so it may not be very good, so i shall apologize in advance.

He had finally told them the secret he had kept for all those years. He was now 18 turning 19 soon and he had revealed himself to the person he had hated for the last 8 almost 9 years. His mother had told him what had happened when he was 10.  
Lord Locksley was his father and everyone knew it, he hadn’t meant to tell them but it just slipped out but even as he told the man right in front of him exactly who he was he didn’t notice all of the other people around him John, Fanny, Tuck, Bull and Azeem had all heard exactly what he said.  
The thing that shocked him the most wasn’t that he had been called a liar, no, he had expected that, it was the fact that he was embraced that shocked him and in truth after he had revealed the secret he felt relieved but as soon as he was pulled into the embrace he suddenly felt safer but not that he would admit that to anyone, ever.  
But what he didn’t know was that the man who stood before him was going to be so damn overprotective of him.  
Robin of Locksley has been so overprotective of his new found brother Will Scarlet he would hardly ever let Will out of his sight.  
After being attacked by the Sheriff’s men he had finally managed to make a bargain with them and the Sheriff that he would personally kill Robin Hood. He knew he was lying when he had said it but before the deal had been made he had taken to taunting the soldiers because they were threatening them especially Wulf because he was the youngest and probably the weakest but he hoped that all the rhymes about how pathetic they were and how big of a coward they were because they were picking on a small child, he was one of John and Fanny Little’s 8 children he wasn’t the youngest but he wasn’t the eldest either.  
Will’s taunts had distracted them from Wolf and everybody else in the dungeon which was what he hoped. They began beating him after a while to make sure he couldn’t do anything they hung him from the rafters by his ankles so he hung upside down with the blood rushing to his head. He must have fallen unconscious for when he awoke the Sheriff was there asking if they knew whether Robin was still alive. How or why he expected them to know that because they had been chained up in the dungeons but still he told him he would kill him, himself that is if he was still alive, IF. So he stumbled through Sherwood Forest with the words of the Sheriff still echoing in his ears “if you fail I will personally remove you’re lying tongue”  
He had gotten out of it the hanging that is, he had left the others. He had to tell the people who had survived the attack on Sherwood, if there were any what was going to happen. He had no intention of killing Locksley. Not yet anyway. He would wait until they had freed the others who were to be hung at high noon the next day even the boy Wulf.  
Once he had arrived back at the camp the first thing he saw was kind of reassuring as he saw Robin of Locksley still alive and walking. He asked Will how he got he got out, how he escaped. He actually thought he escaped. Before Will could answer he was thrown sideways by no other than John Little who was beating him, calling him a traitor. He was a traitor if you looked at it one way. As John continued to beat him, what was left of the bottom of his shirt got ripped off revealing all the bruises from where the soldiers had beaten him and also wounds that still bled freely from where the Sheriff’s men had whipped him.  
All of them were shocked to see the wounds and Will winced when he saw how bad they were, they all looked even more surprised as he never showed weakness in front of anybody, in fact the only emotions he had ever shown to most people were hatred and anger. After the life Will has had it was quite difficult to be happy most of the time.  
Robin had allowed Will to speak because John had stopped beating him and he told them that 10 men were to be hung and the boy at high noon the next day. After that he confronted Robin, while doing so he had been called a liar but what he had conveyed was the truth. After a while Will had told Robin he had ruined his life for when he was a small child Robin’s mother had died and his father had taken comfort with another woman and he didn’t like it at all not only was that woman a peasant but Robin had thought his father had betrayed his dead mother, at the anger of a 12 year old child the lord left the woman and his new child to please his eldest son. This was why Will told Robin that one if the reasons he hated him was because their father loved Robin more than him. After that did the words sink In to Robin’s brain “I have a brother” he muttered then he turned to Azeem and back to Will, he then said it a little louder “I have a brother” then he enveloped Will in a tight hug. They then had to go back to planning how to rescue the others but first off would be bandaging the wounds that were in a criss cross pattern all across Will’s back and chest. Once Fanny, Azeem and Tuck had dealt with that they left the two brothers to talk.


	2. The Hanging

Robin knew that Will must have been exhausted he noticed his droopy eyes as he told his younger brother stories about the crusades and their father but to Robin’s surprise Will was intrigued, just as a young child would be when reading them fairy tales.  
Will eventually stood up from his position to get some water but almost fell with exhaustion. Robin had managed to catch him but before he sat back down again he grabbed the water pitcher and gave it to Will. He watched as Will drank thirstily he then took the pitcher from him, but since their original homes got burnt and destroyed during the attack they had to use whatever they had left for makeshift beds.  
Robin laid Will down with his head resting on his lap, Robin looked at how peacefully his baby brother was sleeping. He decided it was time for the others to rest seeing as, as soon as Robin laid Will down and the moment his head touched his lap he was asleep. He grabbed a blanket which was one of the few that remained before he placed it on his little brother, he, himself laid down after shifting his brother to a more comfortable position. Robin now had Will’s head resting on his chest, silently he draped the blanket over them both, and they would discuss their plans in the morning.

When morning came Robin awoke slightly surprised to feel a weight on his chest but when he looked down and saw Will memories of the previous day came flooding back to him. He had a brother, he, Robin of Locksley had a brother. He tried to move without disturbing the sleeping boy.  
He got up and walked over to Azeem and the others who were planning their attack on Nottingham.  
It was around midday when Will awoke, he saw Tuck and Azeem sat around a fire with John, Bull and Robin a few feet away. They were discussing tactics, he slowly and steadily made his way over to Robin and the others when there was a loud bang. Will and the others had turned around to see Tuck and Azeem throwing a black powder into the fire.  
The bang had almost blown the Friar away but the moor had told him it was the powder that had caused the explosion not him. The Friar had told him he was a wizard, for he was no wizard just a simple moor who Allah had given a job to and that job had been to protect Robin of Locksley since he had freed him from a jail they were held captive in.  
After deciding on a plan they set off for Nottingham. All the way there Robin kept glancing nervously at his brother making sure he was feeling ok, despite Will’s protests, Robin could see that he was still tired even after sleeping most of the previous day and all night and also until midday that day. He did look better. He was recovering.  
On arriving at Nottingham, they were to split up. Fanny went one way awaiting the arrival of John with the arrows while Tuck and Azeem strategically placed barrels of the black powder everywhere, which they had managed to pass off as brew. Meanwhile Bull was at the gate ready to shut the gate should the Sheriff call reinforcements, he was dressed as a Celt which would terrify most people. Robin was hiding by some scaffolding where he was to cut the men from the nooses at the signal and Will had concealed himself in the crowd of people that had come to watch the hanging.  
The Sheriff had spoken to Marian with whom he was supposed to marry. It was a marriage against her will, she wanted to marry Robin. The Sheriff had given the signal for the soldiers to bring the prisoners out as the prisoners passed by the large crowd of people, one man stood out to Wolf as he was familiar. The man had tried to avoid eye contact with him. Wolf attacked the man. The Sheriff had told the guards to bring the man forward so he could see who it was.  
He was slightly surprised when he found the turncoat in front of him. He then asked Will if he had succeeded in killing Robin Hood and Will said to him “well I found his lair but ah, he was already dead” and the Sheriff replied with “are you sure, you saw Hood’s body” to which Will replied “no, I saw a g-grave”.  
There was a look of horror on Marian’s face. The soldiers then produced a sword which had been taken from Will after the fight. The Sheriff then said “string him up with the others” cheers erupted from all around them.  
He knew he was going to die. Will realised this when he saw the smile on the Sheriff’s face when he told the guards to string him up with the others. Meanwhile watching the scene, the Little’s who had known this boy most of his life, they couldn’t let him die. There was Bull who was looking concerned for his best friend but it was Robin who feared the most. He felt he had failed his little brother he had promised he would protect him from harm but instead he had let him fall straight back into danger.  
During this Tuck and Azeem had finished placing the barrels everywhere and had watched the goings on with looks of pure horror on their faces’ from where they were stationed.  
After the guards had dragged Will and Wolf to the nooses, they tied Wolf to the noose, but however it turned out that there were not enough nooses for them to tie Will to. But the executioner saw the barrel and had gotten some rope and began to tie Will to the barrel, just as Robin had signalled to Azeem to shoot the arrow which had fire at the tip towards the barrel. Luckily for Will they had noticed in time and had blown the fire out.  
The Sheriff then gave the orders to start the hanging and the executioner kicked the stool from underneath Wolf, his breathing became ragged as he started to hang.  
Robin who could bare it no longer shot an arrow at the rope hoping it would cut through the rope but it narrowly missed, when he tried again he hit the rope causing Wolf to fall on to the platform. Everyone turned to see Robin ready with his bow to strike again if necessary “Locksley” the Sheriff said bitterly “ROBIN!” Marian screamed “get them troops in here” the Sheriff shouted, while the others were fighting off the soldiers that were already there during this Azeem had been blowing up the barrels left, right and centre but being careful not to hit the one Will was currently bound to.  
“get on with it” the Sheriff shouted at the executioner. So the executioner kicked the stools from underneath everyone else’s feet, Wolf, John and Tuck were trying to bring the whole gallows down, Bull had shut the gate so none of the troops could get through.  
The executioner then began looking for something to execute Will with, and then he saw it, something glittering off to the side in a bag …. AN AXE!  
Suddenly Will felt the cool, sharp tip of a blade resting on his neck. He felt physically sick when he imagined what could happen to him. The blade was then removed from his neck and was brought above the executioners head.  
That’s when Robin lost it he had only just found his little brother he could not lose him. He grabbed an arrow that had been set on fire. As soon as he had seen the look of terror in Will’s eyes, they were practically pleading with him to help. Will braced himself for the impact of the blade hitting him. He waited for the impact but it never came. Robin had hit his mark, he had hit the executioner in the chest. Will had braced himself for the impact but what he heard was not the sound of metal hitting flesh and bone but of a body hitting the ground and metal clattering to the floor beside it.  
When Will opened his eyes he saw Robin kneeling down next to him about to cut him free. Then they heard a loud crash John, Tuck and Wolf had pushed the gallows to the side and with the help of Bull they began cutting people free.  
Once Robin had cut Will free he had to grab him by the collar of his shirt and pull him away from the soldiers that were rapidly approaching where they were.  
Robin kicked one of them in the face and before he had time to get his brother to safety. Will had jumped down off the platform and was beating down a soldier with his bare hands, he had actually got a good hit to the soldiers face, and he had probably broken his nose.  
After this had happened the Sheriff dragged Marian off to be married to him, as she was being dragged she shouted “ROBIN!” Robin replied with “Marian”. Azeem then began to shot about how fighting alongside Robin Hood was fighting for freedom. All the peasants then began fighting alongside Robin.  
Robin had run to the gate and was trying to get through to reach Marian who was still screaming at the Sheriff to let her go. Then Robin had an idea but he needed the others to help “John, Tuck, Azeem, Bull, Will and anyone else who will help, help me move this”. Will along with all the others stared at Robin in shock, Will shouted “you’ve lost it Locksley” for Robin was trying to push …. A CATAPULT.  
They all pushed the catapult into the correct position and Robin jumped on to it and Will again said to his brother “you’ve lost it Locksley” Azeem then jumped on to the catapult too “is she worth It “ he said putting his sword in a safer place “worth dying for?” Robin asked Azeem nodded his head Robin nodded back in reply which was quickly followed by “WILL”, Will then pulled the lever which sent the two men flying over a wall. “blimey they cleared it” was the first thing that cam out of Will’s mouth in surprise and shock, he expected them to crash into the wall but they had flown over it.  
Meanwhile the other peasant shad forced the gate open to attack the troops that Bull had prevented from getting through. They had all fled to protect the Sheriff, so while Robin and Azeem rescued Marian from the Sheriff and his witch Mortianna. The others began fighting the soldiers.


	3. Chapter 3

Once they had killed all the soldiers that had not fled from the fight Much, Wolf and a few others knocked Will off his feet and began beating him, again calling him a traitor for abandoning them in the dungeons and agreeing to kill Robin Hood. While John, Fanny, Tuck and Bull tried to pull them off of him.

 

When Robin, Azeem and Marian had come back down to the grounds from the tower they were in. As soon as they saw the scene Robin looked like he was about to explode. Azeem noticed this and placed a hand on Robin’s shoulder and said “be careful Christian for you do not know how they will react” Robin calmed down slightly knowing he would be no use to Will angry. “what’s going on?” Robin asked John who was trying to stop them from attacking Will “they all think Will is a traitor and attacked him from behind” John then said worried about what Robin would do. Marian watched the goings on from where she was stood. She was confused as she had no idea what was going on. 

 

“stop” Robin shouted and everyone turned around and saw Robin who was breathing deeply to stop himself from flying into a rage. “why are you attacking Will” Robin said even though he knew perfectly well why they were beating him “he’s a traitor and he was going to kill you” said Much “don’t you think if he was going to kill me he would have done it by now” Robin said defending his brother. “well I suppose your right” said Wolf “what if he kills you on the way back” Much said going back to continue beating Will “I say the penalty for attempted murder should be death” said one of the other men. 

 

“if you want my brother, you will have to go through me” Robin said forcefully. “your brother” Much stated confused by what Robin had just said. “yes my brother” Robin stated “you’ve got to be joking Robin, how can he be your brother, you’re a lord and he’s a peasant like the rest of us”. Robin then retold the story of his childhood about his father and the peasant woman. After telling the tale they began walking back to Marian’s land for they were to begin work on their homes in Sherwood the next day. They couldn’t go back to living in villages outside of Sherwood because the King had to pardon them for their crimes. But as the King was still away on the crusades, Marian was to send a letter to him because she was his cousin, but all they could do was hope he got it and they would most likely not be on the top of King Richard’s to do list.

 

Will thought this over in his mind, then turned to his brother and said “well even if the King does receive our letter, it does not mean he will pardon us” with a worried look etched upon his face “don’t worry Will, we will be fine and even if the King doesn’t pardon us I will always be there for you” Robin said slightly concerned for his brother. “Do you really mean that” Will said hopefully but his voice was full of doubt, “of course I do Will, you’re the only family I have left, I’m not going to lose you that easily”.  
Will was starting to grow tired and began lagging behind quite a bit. Robin noticed this and would have gotten him into the cart which had once held the barrels of the black powder but there was no room so instead Robin thought the only logical thing to do was to pick him up and carry him, as they were nearing Marian’s land. They were at the back so no one could see, Robin knew Will would probably get embarrassed. He then picked up the boy who was nearly half asleep.

 

Will then looked up to see his brother smiling down at him so he smiled back up at him. Will tried to say something to Robin but it came out all slurred because he was tired he said something like “Robin what’s going on” he missed some of the letters of a few words “shhh go to sleep Will, we’re almost there now” Robin said in a soothing voice. He then watched as his baby brother fell asleep in his arms. Marian turned around from her place in the cart where she was trying to help the people who were sick and wounded. She saw the two brothers and couldn’t help but smile. They looked like they were meant to be together. 

 

A big brother was exactly what Will needed. He needed someone to look out for him and look after him. Now he had his own family doing that for him instead of having another family take care of him. When they arrived at Marian’s home, Marian allocated them all places to sleep and she turned to Robin and said “do you want to share a room with him?” gesturing to the boy in his arms. “Would that be ok with you Marian?”, “yes you can have my parent’s room”, “thank you” Robin said “it’s the last door on the right, on the first floor” Marian said “good night” Robin said as he walked past his men and women. Some of them awed at the sight of the brothers because they thought it was cute. When Robin arrived at the room Azeem opened the door for him. He hadn’t even noticed Azeem was following him as he was so invested in the lithe body in his arms and he couldn’t have opened the door anyway because he had his arms wrapped around Will, he thanked Azeem and gently laid Will down on the bed. Will stirred slightly “shh go back to sleep” Robin said soothingly, “my room is right next door should you need me Christian” Azeem said “thank you Azeem, we should let him sleep and go downstairs and discuss what we’re going to do now” Robin said quietly trying not to wake the young boy on the bed. The two men silently walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

During the time the others were downstairs discussing what to do next, Will was in the middle of a nightmare. It wasn’t until he let out a bloodcurdling scream that made everyone aware of what was going on. Robin looked frantically around the room hoping that Will had come downstairs to join the discussion and that it was someone else screaming but he had no such luck, before anyone could react Robin had pushed out of his chair and ran up the stairs as fast as he could. Nobody understood what was happening until they saw Robin’s chair clatter to the floor and the pounding of the footsteps running overhead.

 

Robin burst into the room to find Will curled up in a ball hyperventilating in his sleep. Robin then placed a hand gently on Will’s forehead, at the touch Will’s eyes shot open, Robin could see he had been crying “oh Will” Robin said compassionately pulling him towards him, Will then cautiously wrapped his arms around Robin and began to sob into his chest, after the sobs subsided Robin lifted Will’s head to look him in the eye “hey, shh, what’s wrong, are you ok” Robin said his voice full of worry and concern for his brother, “I’m fine it’s just that-that” Will said tears falling freely down his face. Robin wiped them away and then said “just what Will, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, I’m just worried about you that’s all”. “it’s just I’m scared Robin” Will said sniffling “scared of what” Robin said slightly confused about what could have scared his brother, “I’m scared that one day I will wake up and I will truly be alone, I mean I know I like to be alone but I just keep thinking what if you all leave me and never come back” Will confessed. Robin could see he was truly frightened, he began to sob again “shh I’m here Will and I will never leave you I promise” Robin said and he truly meant what he said. He would never leave his little brother. Robin then started to climb down from the bed saying “go back to sleep, I will be here when you wake up”, Will grabbed Robin’s wrist before he could go anywhere “don’t, don’t go please stay”. Robin then climbed back into bed with Will and guided his head to his chest and watched as Will fell asleep again.

 

Marian, John, Fanny and Azeem all went looking for Robin since he had been gone a long time, Wolf followed behind them quietly to see what was going on. When they arrived at the room that the two men were sharing and quietly opened the door, the five of them were not expecting to see what they did, for they saw Will fast asleep with his head resting on Robin’s chest and Robin was absentmindedly brushing his baby brothers blonde hair from his face. They wanted to say something but they couldn’t find the words and when they did they wouldn’t enter their mouths so they silently left the brothers alone. When they arrived back downstairs John then dismissed the others left at the table they would continue this in the morning.

 

Robin must have fallen asleep because when he awoke and saw Will sleeping soundly next to him with Azeem checking his temperature. Will woke up when he felt Robin moving and Azeem’s cool hand resting on his forehead. “how are you feeling?” Robin said looking at his brother with a concerned look on his face, “I’m fine Robin” Will said his voice hoarse and his throat sore from all the screaming. “you don’t sound, ok are you sure” Robin said worried for his brother “whether you are ok or not young Christian, I recommend you stay indoors for now” Azeem stated “but I want to help” Will protested “not until you are properly healed and you are feeling better” Azeem said. It was no use arguing with the Moor because he knew he was going to lose even if he did.  
A few days later Will was back up and on his feet again, he still wasn’t allowed to go to Sherwood even though some of the others had gone. One day Will tried sneaking off to Sherwood, Robin had caught him “William, where do you think you’re going” he said slightly mocking his brother for not being able to sneak away “don’t call me that” Will said whining “oh, so you don’t like being called William then, I’ll have to remember that one” Robin said trying to hide the laughter in his voice, “hmm, I’ve found something that will annoy you now” Will said thoughtfully “oh and what’s that then” Robin said questioning him “do you remember that song, I sung the day we first met” Will said knowing he had found something that annoyed his brother “why, yes I do, I didn’t really like that song” Robin said remembering that day and that song “exactly which is why I’m going to sing it for you right now” Will taunted “oh no” Robin muttered under his breath hoping that will wouldn’t hear but he did and that just caused his smirk to grow “here we go” Robin said as Will prepared to sing “there was a rich man from Nottingham who tried to cross a river, what a dope he tripped on a rope now look at him shiver” Will sang with laughter in his voice “ha you may have found something to annoy me with but I have found something to annoy you with” Will again taunted his brother. Robin had closed his eyes and looked to the floor with embarrassment, what if the people of Marian’s land saw this and thought he wasn’t supposed to be taken seriously. He knew that while he was looking down and he had his eyes closed Will would seize the opportunity to run away and he did, but unknown to Will, Robin knew exactly what he was going to do, so when Will turned to run Robin caught him by the wrist and said “I don’t think so”, Will moaned in annoyance, pouting like a young child “when can I help then” Will said still pouting “when Azeem says your fully healed” Robin said laughing at how childish his little brother was being “fine I’ll go back inside then” Will moped “yes, you do that” said Robin. 

 

Will turned to go back and walked away from Robin but instead of going back inside he ran towards the gate “I should have known” Robin said cursing himself for not realising his brother had given up so easily. “WILLIAM” Robin shouted slightly annoyed by Will’s persistence to help the others. Robin soon caught up with Will as he couldn’t get past the gates. “How about if you’re up for it I could teach you how to use a bow, better than you already can” Robin said whilst panting he was out of breath from all the running. “Really?” Will asked his eyes sparkling with excitement, “yes now go and fetch our bows and arrows and meet me at the archery grounds” Robin then said placing a hand on his brothers shoulder trying to relax him. “Ok” Will said and she scampered off as fast as he possibly could. Robin followed behind slowly shaking his head, laughing slightly at how childish his little brother could be.


	5. Chapter 5

When Will returned with bows and arrows, Robin had set up the targets “alright Will” Robin said “let’s start off with the basics because I know your good with a knife but know offence you’re not the best with arrows” “I know, I know but you’re the best so teach me” Will said bouncing around with excitement.

During the practice Robin turned to Will and said “so Will, Fanny tells me it’s your birthday soon” “yeah but it’s not that big of a deal” Will said “well I think it is, how old are you going to be” Robin said genuinely interested in his little brother “19” Will muttered under his breath quietly. Clearly Will didn’t think his birthday was that important “what was that” Robin said “19” Will said his voice growing a little louder, “I still can’t hear you” Robin said “I’m 19 in 2 days” Will said loudly because Robin was irritating. “Oh ok then” Robin said, a smirk on his face. “Well thanks for the lesson but I think I’m going to go back inside for a while” Will said starting to walk back inside.

 

“This is going to be Will’s best birthday ever” Robin said deviously. “What are you smirking at” John said waving a hand in front of his face. “What days Will’s birthday” Robin asked his mind elsewhere, “Friday, why?” John replied clearly confused. “We are going to plan a surprise party for him” Robin said his smirk growing as he spoke, “good idea, we have 2 days to prepare a party” John said wondering how they were going to plan a party in 2 days and not let Will know. “Well let’s get as many people as possible to help but make sure they don’t tell Will”.

 

Once Robin had told everyone he could, they all swore they wouldn’t tell Will. They were all now sneaking around with food and presents trying to avoid Will. Wolf was assigned with the task of keeping Will away from where the party was to be held. This was of course the garden and dining hall of Marian’s house.

 

So while the others prepared for the party, Wolf was keeping Will busy by asking him to do things, like show him how to use a knife as a weapon properly and after they got bored of that, Wolf asked Will what it was like having Robin as a brother, I mean sure Wolf had 7 other siblings but none of them were like Robin Hood. Will complied with these requests and answered the questions without complaint. 

 

On the day of the party everyone awoke with pleasant thoughts of the party. Meanwhile Will had no idea what was going on since all the others were very secret about it. Robin went up to see Will and bring him to the party. “hey Will, do you want to come downstairs and help us decide what to do next” Robin lied smoothly, to which Will replied “ok I’ve got nothing better to do”, “come on then” Robin then said. Will laughed at how childish his brother was being that day.  
Since he didn’t think his birthday was that important he had pushed it to the back of his mind and almost forgot about it.

 

Robin then had to drag his brother downstairs and when he got to the door frame will asked “where is everybody”, for they were all hiding, waiting for him to arrive to surprise him as soon as they heard him they jumped out of their hiding places yelling “surprise happy 19th birthday Will”, Will had jumped slightly and recoiled away from the room, backing into Robin who laughed and grasped his brother’s shoulders firmly but gently and whispered in his ear “well do you like it?”, “I thought I said it wasn’t important” Will insisted again, to which Robin replied “it may not be important to you but it should be and it’s your 19th birthday so it is important to me”. “Well you didn’t have to make such a fuss about it” Will said looking at Robin with a shocked expression on his face. “Yes I did now quit acting so shocked and enjoy your party” Robin said with a chuckle “o-ok” Will stammered.

 

The reasons why birthdays have never mattered to him were that there was hardly anyone ever there to share his happiness. John and Fanny tried but it just wasn’t the same for Will since his mother died but now Robin was here and little did Will know Robin had made a vow to himself to always make Will feel special no matter whether it was his birthday or not.

 

During the party Robin was asking Will questions about his life like, where had he been living before he came to Sherwood? And assuring him that he could stay with him when and if they were pardoned by the King Richard. The party continued well into the day. 

 

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Marian went to answer it and stood there at the door was …. The Duke of Essex.


	6. Chapter 6

“Hello Marian, I heard about what happened in Nottingham and came to see if you were ok” the Duke said trying to look worried “oh I’m fine, how are you, would you like to come in we are having a celebration” Marian said, surprised to see him.  
“I would love to but I can’t stay long, I’m currently doing some business” the Duke said “ok follow me” Marian said and lead him to the dining room. “What are you celebrating” the Duke asked with confusion, knowing that the Sheriff had been dead for weeks so what could they have been celebrating now. “It’s just someone’s birthday” Marian replied remembering Will’s reaction to the party earlier that day. “Who’s birthday is it, it’s not yours is it because if it is I’m sorry I forgot” the Duke then said “oh no it’s not mine, I’ll introduce you to the birthday boy and his brother” Marian said while opening the door to the dining room. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked towards the door. “Hello everyone this is the Duke of Essex”.   
“Hello I’m Robin, Robin of Locksley” Robin said coming up to shake his hand “well hello there Locksley” the Duke then said “welcome, come and join the party” Robin said walking over to his brother and ruffling his hair, “hey” Will protested trying to straighten his hair out as much as he could.

 

“You look familiar, do I know you” Will asked curiously as the Duke approached him “no but I would appreciate it if you talked to me with a little more respect, as I am a Duke” he replied. “Ok stay friendly” Robin said more to his brother than to the Duke. He knew all about his brothers infamous temper as he had been at the receiving end of it quite often.

 

“This is the person who’s birthday it is” Marian said “Will this is the Duke of Essex” Marian then continued “but you can call me your lordship though” the Duke said.

 

“That’s where I remember you from” Will snarled “you gave the order ... the order that killed my mother”. He was practically screaming now. The Duke had also remembered Will though he couldn’t remember where but after Will’s outburst he remembered everything, who it was, why he gave the order and so forth. 

 

“Ahh is your last name Scarlet by any chance?” the Duke said “not anymore” Robin then said wrapping his arm around will’s neck. “Why what is it now then Lord Locksley” the Duke said “Locksley, his name is Locksley, William Locksley” Robin replied pulling his brother closer to him. “Ahh Locksley he must be an unknown child of that peasant woman he was courting” the Duke said with disgust. “So what’s it to you” Will spat back “the bastard child of Lord Locksley, you should treat me with more respect” the Duke said venomously.

 

“Why should I, you killed my mother because she asked you for a raise so she could look after her family” Will practically yelled at him, by now everything had stopped, everyone’s eyes were on the 4 people in the middle of the room. The party was abandoned to watch the show going on between Will and the Duke. 

 

“I think you should leave now” Robin said getting angry with the Duke for killing Will’s mother and forcing Will to live out on the streets, just because she had asked him for a raise. “Robin’s right I think you should leave” Marian said getting nervous. If a fight broke out, the Duke would obviously win, Will was still just a boy. “Ok, goodbye my lady” the Duke said “John, Bull would you please escort the Duke out, I would do it myself but-“Robin said gesturing to Will. “Certainly, come on Bull” John then said walking behind the Duke.


	7. Chapter 7

As soon as the Duke left the room all eyes fell on Will. He was determined not to cry but he just couldn’t help himself he had to get out of there, no one could see him like this, so he fled. He ran out the door “WILL” Robin shouts, completely ignoring everyone’s confused questions, running after his little brother.

 

He finally found him a few moments later in the room Marian gave them, sobbing. “Oh Will” Robin sighed “come here” he said softly sitting in the bed and held his arms out. His brother immediately melted into them. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry” Will apologised repeatedly “you’ve got nothing to be sorry for, shh, you’re ok” Robin soothed holding his brother as close to him as he possibly could. “I’m sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused, it would be better if I just left” Will sniffled. “No you’re not going anywhere ok, look at me” Robin said gently lifting Will’s head up to look him in the eye. “it’s not your fault it’s the Dukes” Robin said “yes but I lost my temper, you should just let me leave before I cause any more trouble” Will said “no you’re not leaving because you belong here with the outlaws, with me” Robin said with a certainty “do you really mean that “Will sniffed “of course I do, now come here”. He then pulled Will into another hug “come on you should get some rest” Robin said after a few moments of sitting there embracing one another. Will nodded against his chest “I’m going to call the party off and get you a drink ok I’ll be right back” Robin said lying Will down, covering him up with blankets and then kissed him on the head. “Oh no let the others enjoy themselves, they shouldn’t stop because of me” Will said hurriedly “hey calm down, I’m sure the others won’t mind and they will most likely not enjoy themselves anyway they’ll be too concerned about you” Robin said before kissing him on the head again and then went off to complete his tasks.  
Once he had grabbed some water and cancelled the party and told everyone Will was ok just a bit tired and they should not ask him too many questions tomorrow he went back upstairs to take care of his little brother.

 

When he arrived at the room he smiled at what he saw, Will had curled up in the blankets and was asleep. Robin did not want to wake him but he knew that his throat would be sore so he would need the water. ”Will,Will” he whispered waking the sleeping boy. “Robin” he said hoarsely and started coughing “hey drink this it will make your throat feel better” Robin said handing him the water. 

 

He drank the water and handed it back to Robin who put it down on the desk beside the bed and pulled his brother closer towards him until he was sat on his lap and whispered “we’ll get through this together” as he noticed that Will had gone back to sleep, so he laid them both down, pulled the covers over them, kissed the top of his head and held his baby brother close.

 

John, Azeem, Marian and the others came looking for them and that was how they found them, Will had curled into Robin for warmth and they were both sound asleep. They all silently awed and then left so they wouldn’t disturb the sleeping pair and disband the party they would deal with that tomorrow.


	8. Chapter 8

Robin awoke to find Will curled up against him for the 3rd time in a few days. He moved slowly and quietly as so not to wake up Will. Will stirred in his sleep but did not wake up.

 

Robin went downstairs and he heard the sounds of children playing as they were running around Marian’s land having fun. He saw John watching his children play “good morning John” Robin greeted his best friend, sitting down at the side of him. “Good morning Robin, how’s Will” he said concerned as he cared deeply about the young boy “he’s ok just a little but shaken up, I think, I haven’t spoken to him since yesterday” Robin replied with a similar concern. Marian then called them all in for breakfast. 

 

They were all sat around the table when Will joined them he found his place in between Robin and John, on the other side of Robin was Marian and on the other side of John was Fanny and their children “are you feeling better now” Robin asked his brother when he sat down. “I promise I will not let the Duke come anywhere near you ever again” Robin then said in anger still upset that anyone would do something like what the Duke did to his little sibling. He clenched his hand in a tight fist. “Thank you” Will said reaching his hand out to cover his brother’s fist with his hand. Robin then placed his hand over the top of his brother’s hand which brought comfort to both brothers as they felt safe and secure.

 

They all ate their breakfast while talking about going into Sherwood again. Then the conversation turned onto the events of the previous day. 

 

“What happened yesterday?” one of the men asked “what do you mean? Robin asked his hand gripping Will’s even tighter, “yeah what happened with the Duke?” another man asked. Robin had known what they wanted to know but he had asked them anyway, “what do you want to know?” Will asked “you don’t have to tell them if you don’t want to Will” Robin said comforting his brother. “They want to know so I’ll tell them” Will said squeezing his brother’s hand affectionately “alright but if you want to stop, stop ok” Robin said, “Thank you anyway….” Will said looking at his brother all the way through the story. He told the others how his mother had got a job working for the Duke, he never knew what that job was but anyway his mother asked for a raise as both she and Will were starving and the Duke said no so she had to get a job elsewhere that paid better and the Duke didn’t like that so he sent the order to burn down her house and they burnt down her house with her and her 10 year old son trapped inside. The other townsfolk had cleared a way for them to get out and Miss Scarlet urged her son to get out fist. She was so worried about her son’s safety that she didn’t make it out in time and the house collapsed with her still inside. Her son screamed at the Duke saying “you’ll pay for this” and the Duke replied with a smile “you should treat me with respect, and call me your lordship” and then the Duke rode away on his horse with his men following. The child just continued screaming for his mother, when a man and a woman came to him and took him into their home, where the child continued to live until he was old enough to follow the man into Sherwood. The family that took in the child in were sat around the table looking angry. “Oh Will” Fanny said “why did I not recognise him, next time I see him I’m going to kill him” John said putting his hand on Will’s shoulder. The Little’s were the family that took in this poor defenceless, homeless child and raised him into the outlaw he is today. No wonder he was so angry all the time at the first he thought his father loved his brother more than him and then he lost his mother to an arrogant man who thought he was better than everyone else. His father is now dead but he had now got his brother and his brother would not let any harm come to him.   
“oh Will, why didn’t you say anything” was chorused around the room “I didn’t want any pity from anyone, but thanks and John you don’t have to kill him as long as I keep away from him and he keeps away from me we will be fine” Will concluded.

 

If you looked around the room you would find that there wasn’t a dry eye at the table even the children had sensed that there was something wrong. But on hearing the full version of Will’s story, Robin’s hatred for the Duke grew.

 

“Well if he does come after you then he will have us to deal with” Robin said and practically everyone in the room agreed as soon as the statement was made. “Well if that’s the case I don’t think he will even try” Will said whilst laughing, lightening the mood and lifting everyone’s spirits “a toast” John said standing up and raising his glass “to Will and his bravery and a happy belated birthday to you too”, “to Will” everyone chorused, everyone except Will of course it would be a bit awkward if you toasted to yourself wouldn’t it.

 

The rest of the day went smoothly, Robin was spending more time with Marian now but still managed to spend more than enough time with Will and Will loved him for it, Robin was making Will feel comfortable enough now that he was more much more relaxed and at ease with himself and others.


End file.
